Judges threaten to shut Taj in protest at neglect

Indian judges have threatened to shut the Taj Mahal amid accusations that the authorities have neglected the 17th-century monument. The country’s Supreme Court said environmental damage to the white marble Taj was a ‘‘hopeless cause’’ and said the federal government and the administration in Uttar Pradesh state had missed out on ‘‘incalculable’’ revenue by letting it fall into disrepair. ‘‘Either we shut down the Taj or demolish it or you restore it,’’ the two-judge bench told the governments.